One-Way Streets & The Hybrid Writer. There are many writers who either go indie and/or self-publishing; or there are those who will only follow the path to traditional publishing. The argument behind traditional publishing is merit. There's a label on your book and check to say this book was seen to be worth at least this much. Some self-pub writers will argue their method is the only way to truly express your writing. It brings so much freedom and a much higher royalty rate. With that in mind, I was furious and than impressed by this article by Rob W. Hart on Salon.com. Hart seems to hold a mutual viewpoint of the many publishing media. He traditionally publishes his manuscripts, while some of the smaller ones that don't fit into a specific commercial market, he reserves those for self-publishing. He considers himself a "hybrid writer." Although I think the term is a bit inflated, I fall into the category. For instance, many of my works involved signatures, but then there's No-Injury Policy which has been fairly successful since its release in October 2012. The short story collection might found some sort of accreditation in the traditional market, but I knew a book of its nature wasn't expected to be a bestseller. However, it is a collection of stories I believe many people will find--or already have found--interesting. There's just not real a demand for short story collections in the general markets, especially a work like #NIP that crosses between genre fiction and not. The One-True Path & The Cult of Freedom.After my experience with No-Injury Policy and the self-publishing process, I didn't join the cult Hart describes in his article. This wasn't the one-true light of publishing for me. Just like Hart, I also have a goal that centers around traditional publishing. My novels & longer works, I don't know what it is, but the dream is get one of the bigger guns behind my words. For works that don't necessarily fit into the latest trend or niche, I think the indie world is a great place, and for more unusual works, it can be quite fortuitous. I am interested to know your take too. Are you a hybrid or part of the cult? Somewhere in between? Would you rather just stick to traditional publishing?
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